Malaysian Oud: From the Peninsula and Malaysian Borneo
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Among the archipelago oud types neighboring Indonesia is Malaysian oud, which spreads across the Malaysian peninsula and across Malaysian Borneo (Sarawak and Sabah). Malaysia is a neighbor of Indonesia that shares with it a close tropical environment — indeed the two share the island of Borneo itself. In this article we get to know Malaysian oud as the fifth of the world's oud types in our guide, and its place in the oud archipelago.
Malaysian oud: from the peninsula and Borneo
Malaysia is geographically divided into two parts: the Malaysian peninsula on the Asian mainland, and Malaysian Borneo (the states of Sarawak and Sabah) on the island of Borneo. And in both parts the oud trees grow, of the same genera spread across the region. So Malaysian oud comes from two close environments, each with its particularity within the general character of the archipelago.
And we present Malaysian oud as one of the hues of archipelago oud, its neighbor and environmental partner being Indonesian oud. And we recall that our talk here is about Malaysia as a country of origin for oud, not about any other aspect; for Malaysia is an ancient home among the homes of oud in the region.
Malaysia in the oud archipelago
What is striking is that Malaysia and Indonesia share the island of Borneo: for Malaysian Borneo (Sarawak and Sabah) is in the north, and Indonesian Kalimantan is in the south, on the same island. And because the trees do not know borders, the oud of northern Borneo and of its south may resemble one another in many features, despite the difference in political country of origin.
The island of Borneo is shared by three countries: Indonesia (Kalimantan), Malaysia (Sarawak and Sabah), and Brunei. And so the oud of these regions may resemble one another despite the difference in their countries, because their forests are ecologically connected on the same island.
The reality today
Like other oud regions, wild production in Malaysia declined with extraction and rising demand, and managed cultivation gained an increasing presence, according to the general shift we detailed in the shift from wild to cultivated oud. And the trade of Malaysian oud — like others — is subject to the CITES framework that regulates the trade of Aquilaria species, as in the history of CITES and oud.
So Malaysian oud today is traded both as a rare wild and as cultivated, like most contemporary oud regions. And it is an authentic part of the archipelago oud map led by Indonesia.
Origin is an indicator, not a final verdict
The sharing of Borneo between Indonesia, Malaysia, and Brunei clearly shows that the borders of oud types are ecological more than political. For a Malaysian oud from Sabah may resemble an Indonesian oud from neighboring Kalimantan, despite the difference in country of origin. And so evaluating the piece by its qualities remains more honest than settling for the name of its country.
And in the following axis we move to one of the most globally famous types of oud: Vietnamese oud.
Oud types are distributed according to environment and forest, not according to political borders. For the oud of Malaysian Sabah and Indonesian Kalimantan may be close because they are on the same island of Borneo. And so the name of the country remains an approximate indicator.
We specialize in Indonesian oud from its sources in the islands of Indonesia, the heart of the oud archipelago. Begin with a sample by which you test the scent, the origin, and the grade.
Browse natural oudRequest a sampleThis article is the fifth axis of oud types by country of origin, and it is preceded by Laotian oud.
And for the larger neighbor in the archipelago review Indonesian oud.
